Power Companies Making Restoration Progress During Holiday Storm

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — Thousands of homes and businesses are without power Friday after high winds and heavy rain pummeled the region overnight in the first phase of a winter storm wreaking havoc across the country.

As of 2 p.m., there are a little more than 12,500 customers waiting for their power to come back on.

"More than 680,000 households and businesses in 19 states stretching from Texas to Maine are now without power," AccuWeather editor Marianne Mizera reported at 7:25 a.m. Friday.

The deteriorating conditions caused school districts such as Bedford to close for the day — the last before the winter break. SEE: Storm AM Update: HV Schools Announce Closings, Early Dismissals

Utility crews worked through the night.

For example, Friday morning, Orange & Rockland reported that 3,460 customers had electric service knocked out by damage from the storm system and that crews had made repairs and restored service to the remaining customers.

As of 2 p.m. Friday, utility companies report customers out of power:

Dutchess County:

• Cen Hud - down to 485
• NYSEG - down to 871

Orange

• Cen Hud - down to 40
• O&R - down to 94

Putnam:

• NYSEG - down to 2,112
• Cen Hud - down to 0

Rockland

• O&R - down to 7

Ulster

• Cen Hud - down to 792
• O&R - down to 0
• NYSEG - up to 246

Westchester:

• NYSEG - down to 6,629
• Con Ed - down to 1,250

This is a developing news story; check back with Patch for updates.